Trump administration cancels $285M CHIPS grant for Durham semiconductor institute

Trump administration cancels $285M CHIPS grant for Durham semiconductor institute

The Trump administration has withdrawn a $285 million CHIPS Act award from Semiconductor Research Corp. in Durham, ending federal support for the SMART USA semiconductor research institute. Commerce officials said priorities have shifted, despite SRC meeting performance benchmarks and securing more than $1 billion in combined public and private funding.

Chip Industry Week in Review

Government funding/defunding NIST is terminating funding for the SMART USA Institute, a CHIPS Act research center focused on digital twins, prompting congressional concern that the decision disrupts active awards and weakens U.S. semiconductor R&D commitments. Korea Zinc was awarded $210M in CHIPS Act funding towards a new $6.6B Tennessee advanced smelter and minerals processing facility, providing critical semiconductor materials such as copper…